Anyone used Rosetta Stone and learned a language?
- Thread starter Megs
- Start date
![[coco]](/data/avatars/m/87/87037.jpg?1295574127){kind=avatar}
It's human nature to fall back on the language we're most familiar with. I spend a lot of time in Italy and have been struggling with mastering the language, in part because when I'm there, I try to speak Italian and everyone - my Italian boyfriend, my girlfriends and the people I deal with for work - wants to speak English with me. And when I struggle in Italian, sometimes they're encouraging, but more often they just switch to English, which doesn't help me learn.I *do* need to go and just be immersed in the language more. The problem is that Vlad and I are lazy... and he just starts speaking English to me because my German is going way too slow for him and he just gets botheredBad, right?! Let's all give him a kick in the rear for not being of much help!
Anyway, I just got the Rosetta Stone Italian. I already have my ipod loaded with lessons from Pimsleur and I'm hoping I can have enough discipline to use the Rosetta Stone almost every day.
Good luck with German, Megs!
I *do* need to go and just be immersed in the language more. The problem is that Vlad and I are lazy... and he just starts speaking English to me because my German is going way too slow for him and he just gets bothered
ok.. kicking started.
Vlad.. you lazy, lazy, lazy bucket of stuff. Kindly speak german 24/7 or mute yourself completely. See my boot? :boxing
or glove.. ) It's coming for you!!(megs - did that help? lol.. sorry if no...)
Megs, one place you can read up on detailed reviews for Rosetta Stone - German is on Amazon.com. It got 4 out of 5 stars so looks like most are really liking it.... Good luck and have fun learning German!
Megs, what a great idea! I hope it works out...I have heard good things about it, too! I am looking forward to your reports...but please post them in english...PF rules, ya know!!?
Und, ITA about podcasts ...check to see what is available..I know there are some great french ones....
it would supplement what you get from RS, particularly sinc VLAD WILL NOT HELP YOU!!!! Naughty boy!!
Und, ITA about podcasts ...check to see what is available..I know there are some great french ones....
it would supplement what you get from RS, particularly sinc VLAD WILL NOT HELP YOU!!!! Naughty boy!!
I *do* need to go and just be immersed in the language more. The problem is that Vlad and I are lazy... and he just starts speaking English to me because my German is going way too slow for him and he just gets bothered
I completely understand. In our home, we speak Denglish
A mixture between German and English, lol. I mainly speak German with Bart, but sometimes I lapse back into English....He sometimes lapses back into Flemish :shame: 
I have been thinking of doing this just for me, just a skill to have. I only speak English but I was thinking of learning to speak Italian since it's part of my nationality. Although to be honest I haven't a clue who I'd speak it with other than my grandmother who fully speaks English also and only know bits and pieces of Italian. But like I said, I think it would be something to accomplish and a skill to have.
Has anyone ever used Rosetta Stone? How long does it take to learn a language...? I mean to learn it enough to hold a -real- conversation? I'm hoping someone who's used it can let me know how they went about it and what it was like for them, if it was easy or fun, etc.
Has anyone ever used Rosetta Stone? How long does it take to learn a language...? I mean to learn it enough to hold a -real- conversation? I'm hoping someone who's used it can let me know how they went about it and what it was like for them, if it was easy or fun, etc.
I think Rosetta Stone is good for learning phrases in a certain language (enough to get by) but I don't think it's supposed to be used if you want to learn to speak the language fluently since I don't think they have exercises that teach you the concrete grammar rules.
The best way to learn a language is to submerge yourself into it (by going to Italy and not speaking english), but that might be impractical for most people
My main language was English but I spoke a bit of German and took a few semesters in college, but those few years in college don't even come close to what I have learned about the language since I came here!!
R.S. is also relatively expensive...you may be able to get a class at your local CC for cheaper, and then you can interact with others and ask your professor questions if you have any
The best way to learn a language is to submerge yourself into it (by going to Italy and not speaking english), but that might be impractical for most people
My main language was English but I spoke a bit of German and took a few semesters in college, but those few years in college don't even come close to what I have learned about the language since I came here!!
R.S. is also relatively expensive...you may be able to get a class at your local CC for cheaper, and then you can interact with others and ask your professor questions if you have any
Rosetta Stone is an excellent way to acquire a language. However, as the above poster said, you will not become fluent in the language without some sort of immersion (you need interaction with the culture & real people). That said, if you want to pick up phrases and truly *begin* to acquire the language, RS is an excellent choice. Their way of presenting a 2nd language is through acquisition, which is what we do with our first language (acquire, not learn), which is more successful than traditional classroom instruction with grammar rules and memorization.
The only problem with the software is that if you choose an incorrect answer, it either doesn't tell you why it's wrong (grammatically or content-wise) or it doesn't tell you what the right answer is (my Methods of Teaching A Foreign Language professor told us this, sorry if it's fuzzy).
Best of luck! Definitely pursue it!
The only problem with the software is that if you choose an incorrect answer, it either doesn't tell you why it's wrong (grammatically or content-wise) or it doesn't tell you what the right answer is (my Methods of Teaching A Foreign Language professor told us this, sorry if it's fuzzy).
Best of luck! Definitely pursue it!
Last edited:
Another suggestion!!!
I am thinking of learning Italian, too. I teach Spanish & am Italian, so I feel like it would be really fun & useful. Anyway - I'm going to look at my Community College and see if they offer a night course in Italian 1 just to get my feet wet!! If you think this would be a good option, too, I would just check out the professors & see what their teaching methods are (they wouldn't be offended, FL teachers are usually open to explaining their theory on teaching). You can do this by looking at the school's website, checking the professors out at VirtualRatings.com or PickAProf, or even e-mailing them & asking their belief on teaching a FL- whether they utilize traditional or modern based approaches (you want modern, although you can learn through traditional as well if you apply yourself very much). Taking a comm. college course would probably only cost you a little more than Rosetta Stone, anyway, and you could interact with people in the class!!
I am thinking of learning Italian, too. I teach Spanish & am Italian, so I feel like it would be really fun & useful. Anyway - I'm going to look at my Community College and see if they offer a night course in Italian 1 just to get my feet wet!! If you think this would be a good option, too, I would just check out the professors & see what their teaching methods are (they wouldn't be offended, FL teachers are usually open to explaining their theory on teaching). You can do this by looking at the school's website, checking the professors out at VirtualRatings.com or PickAProf, or even e-mailing them & asking their belief on teaching a FL- whether they utilize traditional or modern based approaches (you want modern, although you can learn through traditional as well if you apply yourself very much). Taking a comm. college course would probably only cost you a little more than Rosetta Stone, anyway, and you could interact with people in the class!!
I spend about two to three months a year in Italy, in trips that are usually ten days to two weeks. I've used all sorts of learning tools: Rosetta Stone, Pimsleur and I spent a couple of weeks in Florence at language school, which was the most helpful. As others have posted, RS is a good start but not comprehensive enough for you to achieve real fluency.
What I find is that when I'm not in Italy - and not using the language - for a while, I get rusty and when I return, it takes me a day to get back into the flow of the language, which is very different from English in every way (sentence structure, conjugation, etc) but by the end of the trip, I'm back to my usual level of fluency. So if you don't plan on using the language, you might have trouble retaining it, unless you have a mind that memorizes well.
What I find is that when I'm not in Italy - and not using the language - for a while, I get rusty and when I return, it takes me a day to get back into the flow of the language, which is very different from English in every way (sentence structure, conjugation, etc) but by the end of the trip, I'm back to my usual level of fluency. So if you don't plan on using the language, you might have trouble retaining it, unless you have a mind that memorizes well.
I only use Rosetta Stone because it's free to servicemembers - I am going to brush up my Spanish and German (it has been awhile since I was over there or even in a classroom), and I have to take some Arabic before we deploy (we have to learn enough to interact with the local nationals).
Even if you don't get the perfect grammar understanding that you do in a regular classroom, getting enough out of the class to communicate is what REALLY matters. Trust me, most people that have the language you are learning as their native tongue are happy that you are even trying and making an honest effort to be on their level. I got that both in Spain and in Germany, although in both instances my Spanish grammar was completely more impeccable than my German. My husband took 4 years of German in high school and then got stationed in Germany, and while his grammar is not the best, he has an extensive vocabulary and can express himself really well...so people took to him very well and said he sounded like a native German. Think about it from the opposite perspective: when someone from another country is visiting America and they are talking to you in English, a lot of times if they are not fluent they will speak English but in the grammatical structure of their native language - so to Americans it may sound different or incorrect. But you don't sit there thinking "what a moron!!!! why are they even trying!!!???", right? I bet you understand what they mean and you are able to communicate with them, and they probably learned something from your conversation. So not everyone is going to judge you based on grammar if you are a foreigner to them, they will just be super impressed if you have the vocab AND grammar nailed down!
In your case, the thing to remember is that you want to take the language to interact with people - who are not always so stuck on perfect grammar. If you aren't planning on teaching or doing research or other academic things related to that language, you probably don't need to worry as much as those who are do.
Even if you don't get the perfect grammar understanding that you do in a regular classroom, getting enough out of the class to communicate is what REALLY matters. Trust me, most people that have the language you are learning as their native tongue are happy that you are even trying and making an honest effort to be on their level. I got that both in Spain and in Germany, although in both instances my Spanish grammar was completely more impeccable than my German. My husband took 4 years of German in high school and then got stationed in Germany, and while his grammar is not the best, he has an extensive vocabulary and can express himself really well...so people took to him very well and said he sounded like a native German. Think about it from the opposite perspective: when someone from another country is visiting America and they are talking to you in English, a lot of times if they are not fluent they will speak English but in the grammatical structure of their native language - so to Americans it may sound different or incorrect. But you don't sit there thinking "what a moron!!!! why are they even trying!!!???", right? I bet you understand what they mean and you are able to communicate with them, and they probably learned something from your conversation. So not everyone is going to judge you based on grammar if you are a foreigner to them, they will just be super impressed if you have the vocab AND grammar nailed down!
In your case, the thing to remember is that you want to take the language to interact with people - who are not always so stuck on perfect grammar. If you aren't planning on teaching or doing research or other academic things related to that language, you probably don't need to worry as much as those who are do.
Immersion is fantastic, but if you're like me, you wouldn't feel comfortable in a total immersion technique until you have basic vocab and grammar. For that, Rosetta Stone is great.
